The 2023 presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso, has questioned calls for the adoption of another Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in the 2027 general election.
Kwankwaso, who reacted to comments by Islamic cleric Sheikh Sani Jingir, sarcastically noted that President Bola Tinubu already operates what he described as a “Muslim-Christian ticket” in his home.
Jingir had urged Nigerian Muslims to support the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket ahead of the 2027 election. 
Speaking in Kano, the cleric said he was prepared to support another Muslim-Muslim pairing, as he did during the 2023 presidential election.
“I am one of those who raise the flag of Islam. I am calling on people to come and let us do Muslim-Muslim again,” Jingir said.
“I know this statement pains the unbelievers. I am a Muslim who preaches Islam. If I say Muslim-Muslim, what have I taken away from them?”
Kwankwaso’s Response
Reacting in an interview with DCL Hausa, Kwankwaso described Tinubu as a politician who values balance and fairness, particularly with reference to his political record as governor of Lagos State.
“I know His Excellency Bola Tinubu is a man who values balance and fairness. For all the governors he supported in Lagos, he ensured a Muslim-Christian or Christian-Muslim ticket. Even when he was the governor of Lagos, all his deputies were Christians,” Kwankwaso said.
He added sarcastically: “Even in his own home, he practises a Muslim-Christian ticket ‘in the other room’ — Tinubu/Remi.”
The remark was a reference to First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, a Christian and pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG).
Background
The APC’s decision to field a Muslim-Muslim ticket in the 2023 presidential election, with Tinubu as its presidential candidate and Kashim Shettima as his running mate, generated intense debate across the country.
Critics argued that the arrangement undermined Nigeria’s tradition of religious balancing in political leadership, while supporters maintained that competence should take precedence over religious considerations.
With political realignments already gathering momentum ahead of the 2027 general election, the question of religious balancing is expected to remain a major issue for the APC and opposition parties.
